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Fleet Admiral
Fl'eet admiral' (abbreviated FADM) is a five-star flag officer rank in the Terra Alpha Navy. Fleet admiral ranks immediately above admiral and is equivalent to Field Marshal in the TA Marines. Early Examples The United States Navy did not create admiral ranks until the American Civil War, and then only very hesitantly. David Farragut was the first admiral in the U.S. Navy and wore a variety of elaborate sleeve insignia to denote his rank and position. Farragut was succeeded by David Dixon Porter; after the deaths of these two men the United States Navy had no rank greater than rear admiral. The rank of Admiral of the Navy was then created in 1903 for George Dewey in recognition of his victory in the Battle of Manila Bay during the Spanish–American War. George Dewey held the authority of a modern-day fleet admiral while three permanent admiral positions also existed in the U.S. Navy for the Atlantic, Pacific, and Asiatic Fleets. Dewey died just prior to the U.S. involvement in World War I (16 January 1917) and, during that conflict, the Navy expanded its admiral billets allowing additional positions up to "four-star admiral" which was simply referred to as "admiral". Throughout the 1920s and 30s, the highest rank in the U.S. Navy was that of admiral, with Dewey's special rank Admiral of the Navy discontinued. In 1944 the Navy Department declared Dewey's rank to be senior to the then newly created five-star rank of fleet admiral. In the United Kingdom the equivalent rank was Admiral of the Fleet. The origins of the rank can be traced back to Sir John de Beauchamp, 1st Baron Beauchamp de Warwick, who was appointed 'Admiral of the King's Southern, Northern and Western Fleets' on 18 July 1360.3 The appointment gave the command of the English navy to one person for the first time; the post evolved into the post of Admiral of the Fleet.4 In the days sailing ships the admiral distinctions then used by the Royal Navy when the fleet was divided into three divisions – red, white, or blue. Each division was assigned an admiral, who in turn commanded a vice-admiral and a rear admiral. The rank of Admiral of the Fleet was formally established in 1688 prior to this date the Admiral of the White was pre-eminent and regarded informally as the admiral of the fleet 5 In the 18th century, the original nine ranks began to be filled by more than one person at any one time. The admiral of the red was pre-eminent and became known as the admiral of the fleet. In November 1805, a new rank of Admiral of the Red immediately junior to that of Admiral of the Fleet was created, the announcement on page 1373 of issue 15859 of the London Gazette stating "His Majesty having been pleased to order the Rank of Admirals of the Red to be restored6 in His Majesty's Navy..." and promoting 22 men then serving as Admirals to that rank. Starfleet In Starfleet, fleet admiral existed as a separate rank, but was also used as a title awarded and referring to officers wearing insignia of vice admiral or admiral, such as Fleet Admiral Shanthi. (TNG: "Redemption II")